Is it possible what happens in that film could also be the key to understanding what happens in IE?

In the 13th Floor, people from the 1990'sinvent a virtual world, or a simulation of LA, that also takes place back in the time period of the 1930's. The characters in this virtual reality world also look just like the characters in the 1990's (because they've also created the 1930 characters in their own image).

And after one of the people from the 1990's DIES (while his mind is also still jacked into the 1930 world), the mind of the character from the 1930's world also gets TRAPPED into the other body of the character inside of the 1990 world.

By the end of the film, you also discover that the 1990 world is still another virtual reality world, one that's also been created by still other people from 2024 (who have also created the 1990 characters in their own images).

And after one of the characters (an EVIL jerk) is killed while he's still jacked into the mind of a 1990 character, then the mind of the 1990 character also gets trapped into the 2024 world (where he also gets to spend the rest of his life with the woman he's fallen in love with ... who's also been jacking into the 1990 world).

This 1990 character who gets trapped into the year 2024 also looks just like the EVIL husband who's killed, (who also wasn't EVIL before he began jacking into these other worlds ... where he got his kicks by killing other virtual characters).

So in essence, this other girl from the year 2024 gets the mind of her husband replaced, with a mind that's more like the mind her husband use to have, when the mind of the guy from 1990 (who also looks just like her husband) gets trapped inside the body of this other guy from the year 2024 (thus also ERASING any trace of his ever being the Evil Serial Killer).

So maybe something like this could also help to explain the reason why Lucas & Dern seem to have so many different roles in IE?

And explain why Piotrek morphs from being the jealous & controling RICH husband of Niki, into his becoming the Lower Class husband of LG at the end of IE?

Or help explain the reason why LG pretends like she can't speak Polish in MTTH? A situtation that parallels the other scene in IE where Niki also tells the other older couple she can't speak Polish?

Because maybe the characters in IE are also jacking into the minds of other characters that we see, including the characters from the different time periods?

Or maybe the Phantom also has some kind of power where he can remove your mind? Take it from one body and place it into another body? Maybe he can also send it back into another time (like back into the 1930's)? And that's also what he's doing when we see him WIGGLE his finger as a way to hypnotize you?

And that might also help to explain why it looks like Doris DEVOLVES from being Billy's Upper Class wife, into her looking more like one of the Lower Class street walkers?

Could the Phantom have switched the minds of Doris & Sue? Put Doris into Sue's body? That might also happen after the scene where Sue says she didn't think Doris would be there at Billy's place (in the scene where we also see the young boy on the couch and Doris slapping Sue?

So maybe when Doris stabs Sue with the Screw Driver on the WALK of FAME, that's also really Sue (as Doris) killing Doris (who looks like Sue)?

More thoughts regarding parallel situations between IE and the 13th Floor:

The 13th Floor:

2024 Version1994 Version1930 Version

INLAND EMPIRE:

2005 VERSION 1950 VERSION1930 Version RABBIT VERSION

After Dern enters the AXXON N door in the Back Alley ... this leads her to the Rehearsal for Scene 35 ... where she sees the other version of herself sitting at the table before it DISAPPEARS.

Then she also runs into the Front Door of SMITHY'S HOUSE where she gets locked inside. Next she also watches the inside of Stage 4 MORPH into the Front Yard that appears outside the Front Window of Smithy's place (which is also decorated with a 1950 style TV set, stereo, and furniture).

What if LG is also the actress who plays the part of Sue Blue in the 47 Version?

Since Kingsley tells us this ROLE is a CURSED one, doesn't it also make sense that LG would also get Trapped inside of the story (like Dern does) when she also portrays the CURSED role of SUE BLUE ?

Because whenever an actress plays the part of SUE BLUE, that also means that actress gets TRAPPED inside of another different World or inside of a different TIME period that's not her own time?

So maybe the Dern from the 2005 World gets TRAPPED inside of the 1950 World of LG.

And LG, who's from the 1950 World of Smithy, gets Trapped inside of the 1930 World where we see her.

Maybe the characters from the 1930 World (the Woman in White) might also be trapped inside of the Rabbit Version of the Story?

[/color]And when he's beating her, this might also help to explain the reason why Lucas tells Dern:

I'M NOT WHO YOU THINK I AM.

Because maybe Lucas is also TRAPPED in the wrong time where he doesn't belong like Dern?

We also seem to have 4 Different Versions of the LUCAS character:

L1. PIOTREKL2. SMITHYL3. MUSTASH MANL4. JACK RABBIT

There's also a couple of reasons why I suspect Jack Rabbit represents Lucas.

One is because both Jack Rabbit and Piotrek wear SUITS.

And after we see what looks like the dead body of Lucas (The Mustashed Version of him in the 1930 Version), The RABBITS also hold a SEANCE with Candels for Jack Rabbit.

We also see 3 OLD MEN MORPH BACK into being RABBITS again after they hold the Seance with candels for LG (LG who also DISAPPEARS from the Seance table like Dern DISAPPEARS from the Rehearsal table for Scene 35).

And Jack Rabbit also DISAPPEARS during the Seance for him in the Rabbit Room (just like LG DISAPPEARS from the Table during the Seance for her).

JACK RABBITS Seance scene is also a RED one.

It is also an ECHO or a REPEATED REFLECTION of what happens to LG at her Seance.

So this might also be the connection that IE has to the The 13th Floor?

The way characters in each of these 2 different stories get TRAPPED inside of other different WORLDS and other different TIMES that are not their own World or their own Time?

i watched this recently because of your post, and i did not care for it. i can see how the confusion of reality theme is in IE, but beyond that, they are completely different films. and 13th floor pales in comparison as a film to IE. it felt like a b-movie, except it had a decent budget. but the actors, the direction, the writing, i felt, was average at best.

The story of which The 13th Floor( which I liked somewhat) reminded me a bit was Robert A. HeinleinThe Unpleasant Profession Of Jonathon Hoag.'critics' that 'edit' 'realities' which are 'art works' to higher beings. This old pulp novella creeped me out to the max when I was 13.

Here's still another idea that involves The SECRET of HOW to use the AXXON N DOOR:

1. FIRST TIME around you end up in SMITHY'S WORLD

2. SECOND TIME around you end up in another WORLD

3. THIRD TIME around you end up in the RABBIT WORLD

DERN goes around 3 TIMES:

1. 12:132. 12: 20 3. 12: 24

So to get back to the other FUTURE TIME again -- maybe one needs to go around in the REVERSE DIRECTION 3 TIMES -- in order to get back to the year 2005 -- or back into the BLUE MOVIE VERSION of the story again???

And if you go around 4 TIMES (instead of 3 TIMES), then you'd also end up inside of the NEW VERSION of the story, where we find the ONE LEG GIRL is the NEWEST PRINCESS of the PALACE, or the place where Niki use to live with Piotrek???

YES?

NO?

MAYBE SO???

And this also helps to explain why DERN ends up in SMITHY'S WORLD the first time she used the door (cas she also only goes through it ONE TIME that first time she used it in the BACK ALLEY)???

And it also helps to explain the reason why the character that Lucas plays tells Dern:

I'M NOT WHO YOU THINK I AM

in the scene in Smithy's House where we see him BEATING her???

Because maybe PIOTREK/SMITHY or whoever that is has also used that AXXON N DOOR and ends up inside of the WRONG PLACE or the WRONG VERSION of the story (sorta like the other people do whenever they JACK into the other WORLDS in the 13th FLOOR)???